CARMICHAEL, Calif. — The man who shot Alonso Brown is being called a hero for protecting his family.
Brown, the suspect in the incident, will be booked into the county jail when he's released from the hospital.
The Carmichael father who defended his family is crediting his quick response for being able to make it out alive after Brown allegedly shot into their home. They say things could've ended badly.
Around 1a.m. early Sunday, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said Brown began knocking at the door of the family's Carmichael apartment.
In surveillance video, the scenario can be seen quickly escalating to where he appears to try beating down the door of a family he didn't know.
The family, who did not want to appear on camera, says it then led to gunshots.
"Shot three holes into our bed, where I was laying, one right above the head of the bed where my pillow was. And by the time my husband had put out his four rounds, two hit him. He dropped. And two went to the tree right behind him," said the wife of the man who shot Brown.
According to the sheriff's office, Brown was looking for his girlfriend at the apartment.
"Alonso Brown started tracking his girlfriend, or what he thought was accurately tracking, on the cellphone. (It) led him to an apartment on Fair Oaks Boulevard on the 8600 block. From there, he tried banging on the door, tried to kick the door in. (He) was unsuccessful. Broke a window. Saw somebody inside and tried to shoot at them," said Sgt. Amar Gandhi, spokesperson for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office.
Gandhi said the family’s father, also a veteran, was legally armed and fired back to defend his family.
"I know for a fact, if my husband was not armed at the time, it would've been a totally different scenario. We'd all be dead," said the wife of the man who shot Brown.
While California does not have a stand-your-ground law, Sacramento attorney Mark Reichel says there's a version of it where residents can protect themselves.
But there are four things that they need to follow.
"No. 1, that the threat is imminent... No. 2, that there's violence. Serious risk of great bodily injury or real harm coming to you. No. 3, that they've come into the house or are entering the house. Finally, use no more force than is reasonably necessary," said Reichel.
The family says they've felt safe the entire time they've lived at the apartments, and because they were prepared, they say they were able to stop Brown from doing further damage.
"This could have happened anywhere, at any time to anybody. It doesn't happen just because. It happened because of the person who he was," said the wife of the man who shot Brown.
Reichel recommends homeowners have surveillance cameras installed at their home if they don't already have them. This way, it can help as evidence if anyone tries to break into your home.
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